Constituency representation as crisis leadership: Understanding the potential of policy, service, and symbolic connection-building in response to disasters

In this paper, I investigate how Members of Parliaments' (MPs) performance of the important job of connecting constituents to the representative system prepares them for the uncertainty and disruption caused by crises like fires, droughts or Covid-19. I contribute to understandings of the adaptability of parliamentary representation to crisis by presenting research conducted from 2019 to 2021 on the policy, service, and symbolic connections built by MPs in their electorates. I draw upon a nationwide survey of 111 MPs from every state and territory in Australia, as well as twenty-eight interviews with representatives from the state and federal levels of government in the state of Queensland. I utilize the theory of representative connection-building to assess how MPs in Australia practice their representative work in ordinary times and how this aligns with functions associated with crisis leadership. I find (1) that normally MPs engage in work which brings them into frequent contact with citizens; and (2) which holds the promise of making them well suited to tasks of coordination, information provision, communication and resilience building in the event of crisis; (3) that is however complicated by problems of distrust in politics and politicisation and better suited to responsive functions than reforming.